The application of the rational choice postulate to a political context invariably leads to the conclusion that most voters are ill informed when making the decision for whom to vote. In this paper, the authors do an empirical evaluation of the rational ignorance theory, based on the results of...

In this work we use a VAR/ECM approach to determine the effects of aggregated public investment on output, employment and private investment for five EU countries. Based on impulse-response functions associated to the estimated VAR, we obtain long-term accumulated elasticities, long-term...

This paper proposes a parsimonious methodology to evaluate the impact of large urban renewal projects on public revenues. The impact is largely endogenous, external to projects and may encompass a broad range of instruments, ranging from local to regional to central governments. We look at...

The paper presents an intertemporal utility model that determines the effects of elections on the public expenditure composition. Conventional political budget cycle models describe incumbents as concerned only with the conditions that guarantee re-appointment. Aiming at achieving re-election,...

This paper motivates the focus of EU cohesion policy at large and the territorial cooperation tools on the economic development of territories featuring impoverishing growth associated to low population density. An innovative policy approach to help solving this problem in many Member States is...